Time is a precious commodity which interestingly enough, we have the same amount of, daily. We all have 24 hours on a given day but standards of life differ. It is how we individually use those 24 hours that lead to different outcomes. Two of the major focuses globally are employment and business (and entrepreneurship). Be it someone is employed or not they usually tend to aspire to be in business or entrepreneurship. This no doubt stems from how inadequate a salary will always be. Getting into business comes from the underlying quest for financial freedom or passive income. So what does one do if they have a day job (e.g. 8 am to 5 pm)? Time will be a huge issue so which business can they start that does not require a lot of time?
Consultancy Services
In many articles I have done I have mentioned consultancy services a lot. What is a consultant though? A consultant is a person who is consulted for their expertise, advice, or assistance in an area or speciality. Based on that definition you can see that virtually any expert can be a consultant. It can be business, mining, marketing, financial, sporting, and so on – any field. If you are an expert, have got the knowledge, and experience you can start offering consultancy services. You can make easy money whilst making a huge impact on your clients.
Tutoring Services
These services are much needed these days due to the surge in online or blended learning. Tutors are relevant to students across the whole spectrum from kindergarten to tertiary level. You can offer your services in various ways e.g. physical classes, online classes, home calls, or a cross of all of these. Just a simple e-flier sent across the internet and social media can get you noticed. The beauty of this business is that you can devote just a short time daily, say, 5 times a week or not even daily. It is possible to tutor for just 6 or fewer hours a week at the very least.
Rental Services
Do you have or can you source something that is usually sought after? Some items are most sought after but which users cannot or will not buy. This causes users to resort to renting such items. We can start by mentioning the most obvious – buildings (houses, offices, outlets, and the like). Next, we can mention vehicles then we can move on to specialized equipment or machinery. For example, in mining and farming, there is a long list of such that can be rented. Renting services will not require much of your time. It is even possible to delegate someone else to oversee your stuff which can even be periodic.
Content Creation
It can be blogging, vlogging or podcasting. I can give a practical example to paint a picture for you. One of the YouTube channels I follow from time to time is one by Jessica Os (from Ghana). Her channel has been growing quite well over the past 12 months. She has been making some good monthly income from her YouTube channel. Yet she has a full-time day job – she is a radio producer and presenter. Often she makes her videos after she returns home from work. This is representative of most content creation businesses. They do not require much time as in some cases just 10 or fewer hours in a week can be enough.
Digital Products Or Services
There are an infinite number of valuable digital products that you can make and sell these days. Some of them are software, mobile apps, websites, and templates. Templates are a broad term here as the possible areas of focus are numerous. For example, it can be business plans, presentations, spreadsheets, and so on. I have also seen an interesting lucrative venture making and selling mobile phone themes and icon sets. Remember how in one of my colleagues’ articles he mentioned stock photos – there is money in that. Services vary and are many too; from things like graphic design to web development. I can also add virtual assistance here since the demand for this service is growing. These are all focuses that can constitute a business that will not require much of your time. The awesome thing about digital products or services is the returns. In some cases, the operating expenses are almost close to nothing.
These are some of the businesses you can consider if time is an issue. You could have noticed that they are mostly services-based businesses. Well, it comes as no surprise – they are relatively easier and less tasking to start and manage. They are typically businesses that you can run with minimal involvement. They are businesses you can run by investing a small portion of time during say, the day or week. You can even run them or actively work on them during after-hours. Whichever way you take it you will still need to properly manage your time. I mentioned in another article that discipline and consistency are central to speeding up business success. You will most definitely need those attributes here.